[[quoteright:350:http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/newrifftrax_623.jpg]][-[[caption-width-right:350:''"We don't make movies, we make them funny!"'']]-]

->''"Who you gonna get to riff those tracks?\\(I don't ever pick tracks where the riffs are missin'!)\\Why you always gotta pick [=RiffTrax=]?\\(Only [=RiffTrax=] picks are the tracks worth riffin'!)"''-->-- '''"[[ExpositoryThemeTune It's Time for [=RiffTrax=] ([=RiffTrax=] Theme Song)]]"''' by Music/JonathanCoulton

Years after ''Series/MysteryScienceTheater3000'' went off the air, show head writer/star/novelist Creator/MikeNelson decided to try making money off of the franchise that made him famous via bringing back the whole concept of [[AlternateDVDCommentary riffing on bad movies]] -- but with a twist. Using the format of a podcast, Nelson now riffs on big budget blockbusters that studios would never ''ever'' let people like Mike make fun of. Hence [=RiffTrax=] was born.

[=RiffTrax=] is a website where you can buy (for $3-5 a file) audio [=MP3s=] of Mike Nelson,Bill Corbett,and Kevin Murphy (and occasionally others) making fun of big budget blockbusters such as ''Film/BatmanAndRobin'' and the ''Franchise/StarWars'' Prequel Trilogy. Of course, you need to actually own or rent copies of the movies too, since the audio file only contains The Riffer's witty commentary on the films. [=RiffTrax=] also releases riffs of educational shorts from the public domain, and lately have been featuring more B-movies (public domain and licensed) with pre-synced audio.

Synchronizing the video to the riff is explained on the website in detail. There are generally two ways to go about it: either use the special Windows software to synchronize the riff with your DVD, or play the MP3 and DVD separately with whatever you have on hand. Throughout the riff, a robotic voice called Disembaudio, visually depicted as a robotic toaster as seen in the Trope Image, recites lines from the DVD for reference. If the DVD and Disembaudio say the line simultaneously, you're in sync. Otherwise, pause whichever one is ahead.

Mike Nelson started [=RiffTrax=] solo being joined by ex ''Series/MysteryScienceTheater3000'' loyalists Kevin Murphy and Bill Corbett (aka the second voices of Tom Servo and Crow) soon after, Guest stars such as Creator/NeilPatrickHarris, WebVideo/ChadVader, Music/WeirdAlYankovic, and [[Website/SomethingAwful Rich "Lowtax" Kyanka]] have also appeared. Disembaudio will also chime in now and then to crack a joke. Users are also allowed to send in their riffs; [=RiffTrax=] then sells them and shares the money with the users. This program is called [=iRiffs=]. Some notable [=iRiffs=] include [[WebVideo/TheNostalgiaCritic Doug Walker]] and his brother Rob riffing ''Film/BatmanForever''.

The concept was preceded by a brief series called "The Film Crew", in which Mike, Kevin, and Bill [[TheDanza played themselves]] and were part of a FramingDevice similar to ''[=MST3K=]'', but much more mundane: they were working in the industry and tasked by their boss, Bob Honcho, to provide commentary on bad movies. A combination of Jim Mallon (owner of the ''Series/MysteryScienceTheater3000'' franchise) delaying release alongside ''[=MST3K=]'' [=DVDs=] and budget costs in comparison to [=RiffTrax=] torpedoed that project, but [=RiffTrax=] lives on and even inspired original ''[=MST3K=]'' host and series creator Joel Hodgson to get in on the act and create his own spin-off, ''WebVideo/CinematicTitanic''. ''WebVideo/CinematicTitanic'' / ''[=MST3K=]'' cast member Mary Joel Pehl alongside ''[=MST3K=]'' cast member Bridget Jones Nelson, recently began riffing shorts for Rifftrax.

The site can be found [[http://www.rifftrax.com/ here]]. [=RiffTrax=] also started {{Website/Kickstarter}} drives, first for ''Film/{{Twilight}}''; while they didn't succeed in getting the rights to ''Twilight''[[note]]The rights holders basically said "Too soon, but maybe in the future[[/note]], they snagged the 1997 sci-fi movie, ''Film/StarshipTroopers''. Another Kickstarter was successful enough to not only pick up ''{{Film/Godzilla 1998}}'', but also reached the crew's stretch goal of getting ''Film/{{Anaconda}}''. A third one garnered enough funds to create "The Crappening", netting four terrible movies to riff, including a redo of the infamous ''Film/TheRoom''.

On April 1, 2014 the [=RiffTrax=] crew held a special on Magazine/NationalGeographic channel, where they riffed on classic Nat Geo programming. Titled "Total Riff Off", this was the trio's first appearance on cable TV in over 15 years since the cancellation of ''[=MST3K=]''. The Nat Geo special was later released as a video-on-demand title on the website. Another ran in December 2014.

On March 8, 2016 a Kickstarter project was announced for a live show to commemorate [=RiffTrax=]' tenth anniversary. The show, held in Minneapolis on June 28, was highlighted by an ''[=MST3K=]'' reunion, with Nelson, Murphy, and Corbett joined by fellow alumni Joel Hodgson, Trace Beaulieu, Frank Conniff, Mary Jo Pehl, and Bridget Jones Nelson (and new ''[=MST3K=]'' host Jonah Ray) for a night of shorts-riffing. The Kickstarter drive, which funded a live riff of ''[=MST3K=]'' favorite ''Film/TimeChasers'' in May as well as the reunion show, took just four days to meet its base goal.

On February 21, 2017, a second Kickstarter project was launched for three Rifftrax Live shows, featuring ''Film/SamuraiCop'', Summer Shorts Beach Party, which will reunite many of the old ''[=MST3K=]'' cast once again and a mystery film, which was revealed on March 27, 2017, to be ''[[Recap/DoctorWho20thASTheFiveDoctors The Five Doctors]]''.----

* AccentUponTheWrongSyllable: Bill spends a good minute mocking the odd way Creator/JohnMalkovich said "Sins of the father" in ''{{Film/Beowulf}}''.-->'''Bill''': Sins of THE faTHER! SINS of THE father! Sins OF the [=FAther=]!* AcceptableBreaksFromReality: The riffers clearly subscribe to the theory that a movie is entertaining first and realistic second.** From the [=RiffTrax=] for ''Film/OverTheTop'':--->Good thing they're showing the entire journey to the Colonel's office. Otherwise, I'd go ''crazy'' trying to figure out how he got there.* ActionFilmQuietDramaScene: They often comment negatively on these, making sarcastic comments about how the action is just exploding across the screen, or similar.--> '''Mike:''' ''[During ''Film/TheBourneIdentity'']'' Maybe we'll get lucky and he'll do his taxes in front of us.* ActuallyPrettyFunny:** In their ''Film/ThreeHundred'' riff.--->'''Bill:''' ''Or...''when he sits down to a meal of juice, toast, milk, and Trix cereal--\\'''Mike:''' Uh-oh, where's he going with this?\\'''Bill:''' And he looks at his bowl of Trix and he says, "[[PunctuatedForEmphasis THIS! IS!]] [[IncrediblyLamePun 'SPART OF A BALANCED BREAKFAST]]!!!"\\'''Kevin:''' Wow!\\'''Mike:''' Wow, you pulled it out! Nicely done!** Their ''Film/BatmanAndRobin'' riff has this gem:--->'''Mike:''' Wait ... so they're lingering on a shot ''of a'' frieze before introducing ''Mr.'' Freeze? Huh ... that's actually pretty clever; [[TemptingFate maybe this won't be so bad...]]** Despite their utter contempt and loathing for the ''Literature/{{Twilight}}'' movies, they find Michael Sheen genuinely amusing in his gloriously hammed up role, repeatedly collapsing into giggles when he gets particularly "enthusiastic". They also find Christopher Heyerdahl's Marcus near equally hilarious.** "Actually pretty cool" variation: Kevin notes that the flamethrower-shotguns of ''Film/SuperMarioBrothers'' are actually a lot cooler than the fire flowers in the game. ** In ''Film/FistOfFury'', they occasionally pause to acknowledge how cool Bruce Lee's martial arts moves are. --->'''Mike:''' Jokes aside, punching someone in the face when you're not even looking at him is pretty much the coolest thing anyone can do.** They briefly gush about the Balrog's entrance in ''[[Film/LordOfTheRings The Fellowship Of The Ring]]''.* AddedAlliterativeAppeal: Bill has pulled off a few of these, usually involving the letter W. An example from ''Film/TheRoom'' riff:-->'''Bill:''' His web woven, the wily Wiseau walks warily away from where his work went so wonderfully well, wondering about his wild wayward wife, wanting wheat ... Thins.-->'''Mike:''' You were Ok till "Wheat Thins."-->'''Bill:''' Watermelon better?-->'''Mike:''' No. You got greedy, Bill.* AffectionateParody: ** The jury's still out on which movies they DO like but the riffs of ''Film/RoadHouse'' and ''Film/{{Casablanca}}'' (the riff of which was marketed as a "[=RiffTrax=] Challenge") certainly qualify.** On the note of ''Film/RoadHouse'', Mike went on record of calling it the "perfect bad movie", and that despite its flaws, he can't ever bring himself to hate it.** Zigzagged with ''Franchise/StarWars''. While the riffs of the original trilogy contain several nerdy references and the prequels full of nasty jabs that seem to be out of disgust, these are not mutually exclusive to either trilogy. Additionally, the end of ''Film/ANewHope'' contained a rather brutal rant from Bill while Mike Nelson has expressed immense dislike towards Luke Skywalker and taken pot shots at the franchise in real life.** Their love for the the ''Film/LordOfTheRings'' franchise is pronounced and heartfelt, with dozens of extremely detailed references to ''Literature/TheHobbit'' and ''Literature/TheSilmarillion'' and practically zero real insults in all three movies. This doesn't stop them from making every serious scene into a farce.** In general, the riffs are pretty good-natured as opposed to simply ripping the movie to shreds. (Not that it ''doesn't'' happen occasionally...)*** WordOfGod holds that they're deliberately trying to do this more than they did in the TV days where the show's premise locked them more into ripping on bad movies.* AllAccordingToPlan: ** Used in the ''Film/ThreeHundred'' riff track to try to lampshade the fact that the Persians' only military strategy appears to be WeHaveReserves.** And in ''Film/{{Avatar}}'' when Colonel Quarritch jumps from the flaming wreckage of an airship.* AllMenArePerverts: One of their running gags. A sufficiently hot lady in a state of undress will have the riffers abruptly shift from mocking the movie to declaring it the best movie ever made.-->'''Kevin:''' ''[seeing [[Film/{{Birdemic}} Nathalie]] in her underwear]'' What were people's complaints about this movie again?-->'''Bill:''' Well, that the acting, dialog, special effects, script, and sound editing were all really, ''really'' terrible.-->'''Kevin:''' Yeah, it ''is'' pretty great, isn't it?!* AlternateCharacterInterpretation: [[invoked]] Frequently done, PlayedForLaughs.** From ''Return of the King'':--->'''Mike (As Shelob the Spider Queen after being mortally wounded):''' Why? Why? Tell my 800 children I loved them ... I was so close to curing cancer, give my notes to the medical community ... I forgive you, Sam, and I will pray for you.** [[Film/HarryPotter Dumbledore]] is portrayed as a senile and crazy alcoholic who doesn't care about his students' safety while also being an incompetent headmaster all around. He is also ''extremely'' bigoted towards students with muggle parents to boot.** Lucius Malfoy is actually very AffablyEvil, being both very polite and considerate of others. The problem is that his ObviouslyEvil appearance leads people to assume that that he is being facetious when he is actually being sincere.* AluminumChristmasTrees: Joked about. In their intro to ''[=RiffTrax=] Special: 90s Cyber Thrillers'' they said the internet was this thing that once existed in TheNineties.** In the description on the website for one of the 1930 Batman serials, they state that these shorts are all the information we have about these now-unknown characters. ** A real example: in the ''Film/IronMan'' riff, they joke about the zany investment show Pepper is watching, saying that the real threat to suspension of disbelief in the movie is the idea of such an obnoxious show really existing. [[https://www.cnbc.com/mad-money/ Mad Money is in fact a real investment show]], and the host was playing a caricature of his persona on the show.* AnimatedCreditsOpening: Introduced in 2014. Animated by Creator/HarryPartridge and featuring Music/JonathanCoulton's ExpositoryThemeTune. [[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xXXj0F_-Iz0 Watch it here]].* ArbitrarySkepticism: From ''Nightmare at Noon'', as horses are riding out to weird music.-->'''Bill:''' Music's got me psyched for the horse karate TrainingMontage.-->'''Mike:''' Feels more to me like the horses are going to paint the fences to save the lodge for one last summer.-->'''Kevin:''' Naah! These horses are about to head to ski school.-->'''Bill:''' Ski school? Really...-->'''Mike:''' [[SeriousBusiness Horses can't ski, Kevin.]]-->'''Kevin:''' ''[sputters]'' They can't do karate! They can't paint!-->'''Bill:''' Yeah, just. Drop it man.* AscendedExtra: The riffers occasionally take time out (usually while something ostensibly important is happening onscreen) to ponder the fates of an obscure character, such as [[Film/ANewHope Porkins]], [[Film/SpiderManTrilogy Mr. Ditkovich]], "Big Dead-Ass Guy" from ''Film/TheMatrixRevolutions'', Rock from ''Film/BattlefieldEarth'', and Trevor the toad from ''Film/HarryPotter''.** More indirectly, Disembaudio, who normally exists solely to ensure viewers have their audio and video synched, occasionally joins in for a brief riff and sings a few of the ending credit songs. He even became, more or less, the third riffer on the ''Film/WillyWonkaAndTheChocolateFactory'' track.** This is taken to its logical extreme in one scene of the ''[[Literature/{{Twilight}} Breaking Dawn Part 1]]'' riff, where they spend an ENTIRE scene discussing a painting of a dog face in Bella's room (it's even brought up again about 20 minutes later).** And then there's the wonderful Gabe from the ''Film/BatmanAndRobinSerial'' episodes.** Especially in earlier riffs, Bonesaw from the first ''Film/SpiderMan'' movie would be frequently referenced.* AsianDrivers: In ''Film/TheEmpireStrikesBack'' riff, WebVideo/ChadVader (as R2-D2) tells Luke "You drive like a member of the [[SpaceJews Trade]] [[YellowPeril Federation]]. An elderly female member of the Trade Federation."* AskAStupidQuestion: Kevin has a real low tolerance for these, especially when the movie is tasking his patience to begin with. Often, if someone in a movie asks something like like "Is that X?" he'll yell "No, it's [something/someone bearing no relationship at all to X]. Of course it's X!"* AttackAttackRetreatRetreat: This exchange:--> '''Bill Corbett:''' I should really confront the film makers for being in conjunction with the drug industry for this film.\\'''Mike Nelson:''' What are you talking about?\\'''Bill Corbett:''' Harry '''Pot'''ter and the Sorcerer's '''Stoned'''?\\'''Mike Nelson:''' That's it. Take your mike off and get out of here.\\'''Bill Corbett:''' Fine! I will!\\'''Mike Nelson:''' Get back here. You don't get off that easy.* AuthorAppeal** Mike is practically obsessed with ''Film/RoadHouse'' (once writing an entire book using it as the rubric for SoBadItsGood) and film-related riffs often appear.** All three are obsessed with beer and bacon, leading to shorts like "Three Magic Words", "As We Like It" and "Behavior of Domestic Pigs" (where at the end, they demand that the pigs "Be bacon now!").* AWizardDidIt: In the ''Film/HarryPotter'' films, Voldemort being CrazyPrepared is a common explanation for why a character can't use an obvious solution to a problem.-->'''Kevin''': Okay, so cast the water spell directly into Dumbledore's mouth.-->'''Bill (as Dumbledore)''': Yes, uh, well, ''Voldemort'' made it so that we couldn't.* BadassMustache: Or not so badass, as the case may be, but every mustache that appears on screen brings comments of either admiration or scorn.* BaldOfAwesome[=/=]BaldOfEvil: If a character is bald, they will remark on it repeatedly, pitying or making fun of him. If multiple characters are bald, they find it disturbing, as in ''Film/TheFifthElement'': "How many bald guys does one movie ''need''?"* BearsAreBadNews: During a period in 2016, several consecutive VOD releases featured a bear attack in some way, briefly causing the guys to joke that there was a weird theme going on and hope for ''yet another'' bear to appear in every movie (or, as Bill put it, "keep the streak alive!").* BettyAndVeronica: Gets brought up during ''Neutron the Atomic Superman'' when Bill describes the bumbling attempts of the three male leads to get the only woman in the movie to tell them which one she's in love with.-->'''Bill:''' This is like if you were to replace [[Franchise/ArchieComics Betty]], Veronica, and Archie all with [[{{Squick}} Mr. Weatherbee]].* BigNo: For bonus points, the riffers often imitate Darth Vader's BigNo from ''Film/RevengeOfTheSith''.* BlackComedyRape: In the ''WesternAnimation/{{Beowulf 2007}}'' [=RiffTrax=], the Riffers make a joke about a king being violated by a dragon.* BangBangBANG: Mike on the first firing of Indy's pistol in ''Film/RaidersOfTheLostArk''.--> '''Mike:''' His pistol sounds like a deck gun on the ''Bismarck''!* BrainBleach: This happens a ''lot''.** In the [=RiffTrax=] of ''Film/AttackOfTheClones'', Kevin tells Mike during the GreasySpoon scene regarding slovenly cook Dexter, "Mike, I invite you to think about his underpants." Mike understandably reacts in horror and cries out, "WHY, Kevin?!" Kevin subverts the trope by telling him that as long as he's thinking about Dexter's underpants, he's forgetting the rest of the movie. Mike sighs happily, "You're right. Ah, his underpants..."** Similarly, their reactions to Jar Jar whenever he appears tend to be either disgusted and bitter insults or flat out retching and groaning.** In the [=RiffTrax=] of ''Film/TheRoom'', every sex scene is greeted with horror, and Kevin's reaction to Tommy Wiseau's pasty white rear end is priceless.--->'''Kevin:''' DISCONNECT! ''[electric shock]'' DISCONNECT! ''[electric shock]'' DISCONNECT! ''[electric shock]''** [[Film/WillyWonkaAndTheChocolateFactory Willy Wonka]] apparently keeps nude photos of Larry King in one of his rooms.** In the live riff of ''House on Haunted Hill'', the audience cheers at the sight of Carol Ohmart in a flimsy nightgown. Mike informs them that she's still alive, and in her 80s, so they should calm down.** During the ''[=MST3K=] Reunion Special'', Kevin revealed one of his memories indelibly etched on his brain from his ''Series/MysteryScienceTheater3000'' years was catching "Mr. B. Natural" making out with "Jack Perkins." [[note]]In other words, Bridget Nelson (who played Mr. B. Natural along with lots of other roles) making out with her husband, Mike.[[/note]]** In ''Film/StarTrekGenerations'', when a shot of the Duras Sisters makes Kevin wonder if they were seeing the only hairless part of their breasts through the window of their clothes, Mike screams in horror.** In ''Supersonic Man'', Mike, Kevin and Bill are quite horrified at the beginning at the almost nude body of our hero with Kevin describing it as him wearing "a super-tiny thong and a gimp mask".* BreadEggsMilkSquick: In the short, ''Welcome Back Norman:''--> '''Kevin:''' "Inside that briefcase: third-quarter sales figures, a well-thumbed issue of ''Penthouse,'' and, oddly enough, several ICBM launch codes."* BrickJoke:** In the riff of ''Film/RevengeOfTheSith''--->'''Mike (as the dying Padme):''' Tell ... Luke ... I loved him ... best.*** Then three feature length riffs later in ''Film/ReturnOfTheJedi'' as he is leaving Leia after revealing he's her brother:---->'''Kevin (as Luke):''' Oh and I remember mother loved me best. Bye!** The ongoing RunningGag throughout the riffing of the Original Trilogy where Han Solo/Harrison Ford is psyched to be filming ''Film/{{Firewall}}''....ending with old Han in ''Film/TheForceAwakens'' lamenting [[OldShame that he was]] in ''Film/{{Firewall}}''.** In the riff of ''Film/HarryPotterAndTheOrderOfThePhoenix'', really early on in the beginning there is an owl onscreen with a floating letter next to it.---> '''Mike:''' It's time for Letter and the Owl, rockin' your drive to work!*** Then, more than an hour later, Harry turns on the radio:----> '''Radio:''' ... notorious mass murderer Sirius Black.----> '''Mike:''' So we're makin' "Sirius Black" the "Phrase that Pays" here on Letter and the Owl!** ''At Your Fingertips: Grasses'' infamously posed and never answered the greatest question of our time: "Is corn grass?" Over a year and about three live [=RiffTrax=] later, the answer--yes, corn is grass--was given in a title card at the ''Jack The Giant Killer'' live riff. The audience was very appreciative.*** It gets revisited and {{Lampshaded}} in the live riff of ''Film/ManosTheHandsOfFate''. In the intro to another "At Your Fingertips" short about cylinders, Kevin explains, for those who have been wondering for two years, that yes, corn is a type of grass. Then halfway through the skit, he wonders if cylinders are grass.** Early in ''Film/BatmanAndRobin'', when one of the cops gets hit on the head, for some reason the movie produces a very cartoony "bonk" sound. Kevin, Mike, and Bill commented on the poor man's "coconut head." Much later on in the film, Kevin makes an IncrediblyLamePun, and Mike smacks him on the head, producing the very same sound effect. Mike then apologizes to Kevin, saying that he forgot about his "coconut head."** Often, they will make a joke during the opening of the Rifftrax, and then deliver a follow up at the end.* ButtMonkey:** {{ComicBook/Hawkeye}} takes a lot of abuse during ''Film/{{The Avengers|2012}}'', thanks to being massively OvershadowedByAwesome. Ron Weasley also gets this reaction. Hell, Hawkeye and Ron get this treatment even when they aren't in the movie being riffed. It's basically devolved to Hawkeye being the low bar for super heroes from that point on and Ron becoming synonymous with general lameness or failure. Poor guys.** Among the crew, Bill is usually the target of verbal abuse, while Kevin usually suffers physical abuse. * CaptainObvious: A running gag. Usually it's Kevin.* CatapultNightmare: Anytime a character does this, the guys will pretend they were dreaming about some bad movie the actor was in.* CatBoy: Bill Corbett is a "sexy kitten" in their halloween costume sketch during their live riff of ''Film/HouseOnHauntedHill1959''. Played in a comically halfhearted fashion by Bill in spite of applause and catcalls from the audience because he "doesn't want to overwhelm the poor audience."* CatsAreMean: Bill mentions in ''Film/TheHungerGames'' that he doesn't trust kittens, because they start off all cute, then you turn your back, and BOOM! They turn into cats. Evil, evil cats.* CatchPhrase: Mike's nasal "Hey!" whenever another riffer sneaks a joke past him. (This is continued from ''Series/MysteryScienceTheater3000''.)** Bill has said "Go ''so'' to hell" more than once to the other riffers in response to terrible puns. He went one step further in the ''Film/{{ROTOR}}'' riffing, when he exploded, '''"I'LL KILL YOU WHERE YOU STAND, MURPHY!"'''* ChewingTheScenery: In the riff of ''Hawk The Slayer'', Mike asks Jack Palance how the scenery tastes.* ClusterFBomb: Both Bill and Mike deliver one of these at the end of the riff of "Birdemic". Kevin's singing helps calm Bill, but not so much Mike.* ComicallyMissingThePoint[=/=] [[MisaimedFandom Misaimed Hatedom]]: The riffers constantly trash ''Film/ParanormalActivity'' for not being a thrill-a-minute horror flick, rather than the suspenseful buildup it was supposed to be. Then again, RuleOfFunny is in effect, folks.-->They've officially taken the activity out of Paranormal Activity.** This trope is a major component of their comic style. Many, many jokes are made in each Rifftrax that hinge on them misreading the situation. * ConversationCut: Especially bad ones are mocked, such as when it seems like the characters have stopped their conversation mid sentence and flown to the other side of the country before resuming.* {{Corpsing}}: More often than not, the guys are laughing along with their own riffs, especially if the material is bizarre. Bill Corbett utterly breaks when Mike drops into a Scooby-Doo impression in the ''Film/NightOfTheLivingDead1968'' live riff.* CreatorProvincialism: The guys take several shots at their home state of Minnesota, particularly its frigid winters, and their former governor Creator/JesseVentura. Other cities in the Midwest also get jokes made at their expense, particularly UsefulNotes/{{Chicago}}.* CyanidePill: Bill gets so bored during ''Film/PsychoII'' that he tries to take one. Kevin wrestles it out of his hand, and then tries to take it himself.* DamnedByFaintPraise: In an effort to say something positive about ''Film/ThePhantomMenace'', Mike describes it as being "slightly preferable to having a sand burr in your eye." Kevin says he guesses he'd take the film over "having a hot needle stuck into my infected toenail."* DarkerAndEdgier: If there's a happy, cheerful song in a short, its lyrics will be immediately changed to reflect death and horror. See the "County Fair" short for a great example.* DeliberateValuesDissonance: A popular gag, as it was with ''Series/MysteryScienceTheater3000''. For example, when Buzz in ''Film/MrBNatural'' puts a record on his turntable to help him feel better, Bill quips, "Now to try some of this so-called 'race music'."* DelusionsOfEloquence: In the short "Patriotism", the riffers take exception to some indecipherable advice from host Bob Crane:-->'''Bob Crane:''' If we learn to care for others, to respect others, we'll learn how to care for, to respect, our country.-->'''Bill:''' Oh, well ... huh?-->'''Kevin:''' What the ...?-->'''Bill:''' Wanna diagram that sentence?-->'''Mike:''' Is this fence patriotic? It is, because it respects the care for with respect will care for others our country.* DemotedToExtra: As the syncing issues that were Disembaudio's original purpose have mostly been eliminated (as well as him being TheScrappy to many fans), he's pretty much relegated to once-an-episode drop-ins and singing (badly) over the end credits of whatever movie they're tackling.* DepartmentOfRedundancyDepartment: The theme song points out that Rifftrax has "professional jokes by professional comedy professionals."* DontExplainTheJoke: In the commentary for ''Film/{{Clash of the Titans|2010}}'', they make a joke about there being no jobs in Greece. Mike follows it up with:-->'''Mike:''' It's funny because their economy is currently much worse than ours.* DoubleMeaning: A subtle one. At the beginning of the live riff of ''Film/ManosTheHandsOfFate'', Kevin says "Hey, this looks familiar." Some audience members laugh, under the presumption that he's referring to when he riffed the movie for ''Series/MysteryScienceTheater3000''.[[note]]He's the only one of the three who provided commentary for that movie, since Joel Hodgson was still the host, and Trace Beaulieu still voiced Crow[[/note]] He then follows up with the punchline "Oh right, it's video from my vacation in Hell!"* DrivenToSuicide: Attempted suicide, at least. Kevin and Bill have tried to kill themselves more than once due to the awfulness of the movie they're watching. See CyanidePill above for one example.* DudeNotFunny: [[invoked]]** "The jokes in ''Film/{{Memento}}'' are pretty rare, folks, enjoy 'em while you can."** Kevin takes the time to acknowledge that the flashback of Rosalie being raped in ''[[Literature/{{Twilight}} Eclipse]]'' is genuinely disturbing.** The crew is practically silent for the beginning of ''Film/XMen1'', during the Holocaust scene, with the only comments being about how genuinely unsettling they find it, mostly Bill asking Mike what he was thinking when he decided to make fun of this movie, implying that he thinks this is what the whole movie will be like.** This is arguably in play/overlaps with RefugeInAudacity when they crack jokes about Will Smith [[spoiler:killing his dog]] in ''Film/IAmLegend''.** Their discomfort is palpable during the scene in ''Film/StarTrekGenerations'' where Picard reveals that his family was killed in a fire.** Their VOD version of ''Film/SuperMarioBrothers'' edits out a brief shot of the World Trade Center disintegrating.** The gang nervously (and sarcastically) claims they're getting tired of goofy, light-hearted summer blockbusters… while watching [[Film/TheDarkKnight Two-Face tears Gordon's crying son from his equally terrified mother and sister to kill him while Gordon screams for Two-Face to leave him alone.]]** Discussed and lampshaded during ''Deathly Hallows'', Part II during a brutal scene of the cast grieving their losses (including [[spoiler: Mrs. Weasley weeping over her son Fred and stroking his hair]]).-->'''Kevin''': Hey guys, when beloved characters like these die, maybe out of respect, we should just knock off on the jokes.-->'''Mike''': Sure Kevin. Just out of curiosity, can you name these beloved characters, Kevin?-->'''Kevin''': (''regarding [[spoiler: Remus and Tonks]]'') Oh this is… Meatloaf and his wife, Mrs. Meatloaf?** PlayedForLaughs in ''Jurassic World'', when [[spoiler: Zara is grabbed and fought over by pterosaurs, dropped in a deep lagoon, then grabbed and dunked into the water like an Oreo, and finally gobbled alongside a pterosaur by the ''Mosasaurus'' and almost certainly doomed to be digested alive if she didn't get shredded by the beast's second pair of teeth in its' throat.]] The guys wonder what the hell she did to deserve such a death.** The guys are seriously disturbed by the talk of children being killed in car accidents in "Seat Belts: The Life Saving Habit." They're particularly angry with the parents who object to buying safety seats:-->'''Bill:''' (sighs) "Listen and weep as the announcer begs the parents to love their children."** Some people people feel this way about the ''{{Film/Titanic|1997}}'' riff, due to being filled to the brim with BlackComedy.--->''[As the stern is rising up and people fall to their death, while bouncing off of objects on Titanic's stern]''\\'''Bill:''' [[CrossesTheLineTwice It's]] [[Series/ThePriceIsRight Plinko!]]\\'''Kevin:''' ''[singing]'' ItsRainingMen!** To some, this joke about the late Creator/RichardHarris in the ''Film/HarryPotterAndTheChamberOfSecrets'' riff.--->''[During one of Dumbledore's pauses]'' I think he just died right there.** An entirely accidental case in ''Swamp of the Ravens'' is when they riff an autopsy scene in the usual manner ... clearly not knowing said scene was an ACTUAL autopsy that was put into the movie, which makes all the riffs rather disturbing.** A mutual example of this between the audience and the riffers occurs in the Christmas Shorts live show after a mild joke about the little girl in "A Visit to Santa's Toyshop" is [[ParentalFavoritism her father's favorite]] from Kevin draws groans of horror and disgust from the audience, who clearly think he is joking about [[ParentalIncest something else]] which then draws a highly disturbed rebuke from Mike that the audience would think this.** In the riff of ''Film/TheSwordAndTheSorcerer'', the three are all legitimately disgusted by the joking treatment of an attempted gang-rape, and the "hero's" attempts to use saving the heroine from said gang rape to coerce her into sex.* DudeWheresMyRespect: A running gag in their riffs of the ''Film/HarryPotter'' series, particularly with regard to the continued distrust of the boy that saves Hogwarts once a year.-->'''Harry:''' I was only [using magic in front of muggles] to save [them.]-->'''Bill (continuing as Harry):''' Also I've saved the school four times and have a flawless record of being on the side of truth and justice.* DullSurprise: The kids from "Drugs Are Like That"; their faces aren't seen often, but their voices are incredibly dull and lifeless.-->'''Kevin:''' Someone ought to check this house for carbon monoxide.* DungFu: Anytime there's a simian onscreen. Especially ''Film/OneGotFat''.-->'''Kevin:''' It's what they do, Mike! You're living in denial!* EarWorm: [[invoked]] Invoked by name from Bill Corbett.* EarlyInstallmentWeirdness: The first live show had Veronica Belmont hosting, musical numbers from Johnathan Coulton, and random commercials. None of those were received very well and all of the live shows since have been pretty much about riffing the shorts and feature films.* EldritchAbomination: How they interpret [[spoiler: Renesmee Cullen]] from ''{{Literature/Twilight}} Breaking Dawn Part 1'', with Kevin flat out screaming "CTHULHU!" when he sees her during the birth scene.** Especially in ''Breaking Dawn Part 2''. [[spoiler:When she goes to Charlie's for Christmas, they have Mustache Dad claim that "all the Christmas decorations turned to ash and the advent calender started weeping blood."]]** Their reaction to the [[BigLippedAlligatorMoment shot of an Asian swamp eel slithering for no reason at all]] is to dub it "Cthulhu's dick".[[invoked]]* ElevatorFloorAnnouncement: Mocked in the ''Film/HarryPotterAndTheOrderOfThePhoenix'' riff:-->'''Elevator:''' Department of Mysteries.-->'''Mike:''' Also hardware, lady's lingerie and blatant traps for idiot children.* [[invoked]] EnsembleDarkHorse: A gag used by the riffers. They often like to latch onto a character who is clearly not a focus of the story or even just has one or two lines and a memorable name. For example:** In ''Film/ANewHope'', they pine for Porkins, or sometimes Biggs Darklighter.** In ''Film/SpiderMan1'' (and beyond) they often reminisce about Bonesaw.** In ''Film/TheMatrixReloaded'', they wax adoring of the Merovingian's unnamed bouncer, [[FanNickname "Big-Dead-Ass-Guy"]].** In several movies, when the camera focuses on the violent death of an extra, one or more of the riffers will start shouting "No! Not 'That Guy!' How could they kill 'That Guy?'"** Mr. Bungle, the puppet who shows kids how not to behave in the lunchroom, becomes a veritable mascot for the [=RiffTrax=] shorts. ** ''Film/{{The Avengers|2012}}'': The cellist Agent Phil Coulson misses a date with. They must have been on to something with this one, she was actually shown in an episode of Series/AgentsOfShield.** In ''Film/{{Titanic|1997}}'' they spend more time than you'd expect reflecting on the misfortune of Sven, the guy Jack Dawson wins his Titanic tickets from.** By ''far'' their favorite character in the ''Batman and Robin'' serial is the Wizard's rarely-seen henchman, [[SpecialPersonNormalName Gabe]] (and, to a lesser extent throughout the series, his other equally unfortunately-named goons -- Neil, Jason, Ives, ''et al.''). * EverythingsBetterWithMonkeys:** Discussed in several of their riffs. For example, when Odin hurls Film/{{Thor}}'s hammer to Earth, they want a monkey to find it.** For the first ten minutes of ''Laser Mission'', the guys keep asserting that the movie would be several times better if it were actually "Laser Chimps", as they randomly guessed at first.** During the climactic arm-wrestling match at the end of ''Film/OverTheTop'', Mike muses on how the film would have been vastly improved if Creator/SylvesterStallone had been teamed with a chimp, rather than a boy. Amusing activities the chimp could have engaged in would have included pickpocketing Robert Loggia's wallet.** Notably averted in ''Film/OneGotFat''. Bill is basically traumatized throughout the entire piece. Granted, those ''papier-mâché‎'' chimp masks did plunge pretty far down the UncannyValley.** In a short about sentences they notice a live monkey randomly in the background at the beginning and for the rest of the riff they talk about all the cool things the monkey could be doing off-screen and lament the fact that the short didn't focus on it instead.* EvilDetectingDog: Rebel the dog's incessant barking at the [[Film/SantaAndTheIceCreamBunny Ice Cream Bunny]] does not go unnoticed by the riffers.-->'''Mike (as Rebel):''' It is a thing of ''evil!'' We animals can sense such things!-->'''Bill (as Rebel):''' Evil! Evil! It must be destroyed with the [[Film/TheOmen Daggers of Megiddo!]]* FaceOfAThug: The guys like taking obviously thuggish characters and stating that they're really highly-educated and/or humanitarians. The [[RunningGag/RiffTrax Running Gags]] page has specific examples.* FauxlosophicNarration: Present in some of the shorts, including "American Thrift", "What It Means To Be An American" and "Your Chance To Live".* FelonyMisdemeanor: While watching ''Franchise/StarWars: Film/ANewHope'', they decry the notorious changes to iconic scene of Han shooting Greedo as the foulest cinematic abortion of all time, comparing it to a mustache on the Mona Lisa.* FictionalCountry: Discussed during ''Film/FantasticFourRiseOfTheSilverSurfer''.-->'''Kevin:''' Where is [[{{Ruritania}} Latveria]], anyway?-->'''Mike:''' It's nestled between Norway and China.-->'''Kevin:''' Those two countries are nowhere near each other.-->'''Mike:''' They are at Epcot Center.* {{Flanderization}}: When they don't engage in AlternateCharacterInterpretation, they often go this route. As a rule of thumb, if a character, especially a minor one, has some noticeable trait or feature, the guys will exaggerate the hell out of it.** In their ''Film/TheDarkKnight'' riff, they actually make SelfDemonstrating/TheJoker even crazier.--->'''Joker:''' You want to know why I use a knife?--->'''Mike (as Joker):''' Because soup tastes better when it's difficult.** In the ''Franchise/StarWars'' series, they make Luke singularly obsessed with power converters, and give Anakin/Vader a pathological hatred of sand (see RunningGag below).** They have a tendency to make hot women playing scientists or other brainy characters sound like completely shallow airheads. To be fair, they also make Sam Worthington and Rod from ''{{Film/Birdemic}}'' sound about as intelligent as a strain of bacteria, as well.** In ''Film/{{Twilight}} Breaking Dawn Part 1'', Bill interprets one of Edward's many bizarre facial contortions as him trying and failing to fart. This starts up a running gag that culminates with Kevin enumerating Edward's flaws, ending with "you can't fart." Bill says "In his defense, I kinda forced that one on him."** And then there's ComicBook/{{Hawkeye}}, who devolves from BadassNormal to Worst Superhero Ever due to them interpreting him not having powers (and not being Scarlett Johansson) as him being a useless and ineffectual character.** In general, they like to make characters sound a lot more stupid/pathetic/bland than they actually are. And they're not afraid to venture into CharacterDerailment territory to do this.* FlatCharacter: They love pointing out and mocking these kinds of characters. Rod from ''{{Film/Birdemic}}'' and Bella of ''{{Film/Twilight}}'' are of special note.** While watching ''Frankenstein Island'', Kevin states that the four male leads could change their names each time they introduce themselves, and he wouldn't even notice.* TheFourthWallWillNotProtectYou: During ''Film/BatmanAndRobin'', when Mr. Freeze quips that he hates it when people talk during the movie, Bill starts wondering if Freeze can hear them cracking jokes.** In ''Mutant'', Wings Hauser's character at one point looks off screen, and yells at his brother Mike to shut up. Mike Nelson briefly thinks that Wings is yelling at ''him''.* FreezeFrameBonus: The [[Series/MysteryScienceTheater3000 Satellite of Love]] can briefly be seen in the AnimatedCreditsOpening.* FreudianTrio:** Id: Bill (always the first to chime in with a silly or crude joke, more prone to angrily lashing out)** Super-Ego: Kevin (more measured and often more elaborate riffs)** Ego: Mike (the leader, more or less, and a mixture of the two styles)*** To some extent, they maintain their roles from ''Series/MysteryScienceTheater3000''.* FridgeBrilliance: Sarcastic InUniverse example: jettisoning the Death Star plans to Tatooine in ''Film/ANewHope'' to hide them from Darth Vader is an act of brilliance; ''he hates sand''.* FullNameUltimatum:-->'''Frodo:''' Smeagol?-->'''Bill (as Frodo):''' Smeagol Thomas Peterson, you come out here right now!* FunnyBackgroundEvent: A staple of their humor. Since the guys have to watch anything they riff many, many times, they tend to notice details which a casual viewer would miss and remark or obsess on them. Examples include:** In the short "Making Sense with Sentences" Mike notices a monkey in the background and will not let it go.** Kevin points out an obviously flat tire in the Samurai Cop live show.** A tissue caught in a car's windshield wipers drives Mike to a bit of SanitySlippage in ''{{Film/Sharknado}}''.** In the live "Film/NightOfTheLivingDead1968":-->'''Ben:''' I've boarded up this place pretty good.-->'''Kevin:''' Window right behind me notwithstanding.* GetAHoldOfYourselfMan: In "The Bermuda Triangle", a shot of nothing but the ocean gives Bill horrible ''Film/{{Waterworld}}'' flashbacks. Kevin tells him to get a grip, a slap is heard ... and Bill, feeling much better, thanks Kevin for slapping him.* [[AGodAmI A God Is He]]:** Mike, Kevin and Corbett ponder if Disembaudio really is God in ''Film/BattlefieldEarth''.** Kevin wonders if Mark from ''Film/TheRoom'' is God based on the fact that he seems to be able to hear the movie's soundtrack.* AGoodNameForARockBand: Their typical variation of this gag is to state that they were in such and such band.-->'''"Weird Al" Yankovic''': Can you actually play bass, Mike?-->'''Mike Nelson''': <{{Beat}}> Not a lick.* HaveAGayOldTime: Comes up a lot in many of the older shorts.* HilariouslyAbusiveChildhood:** ''Film/ThreeHundred'' provides the abusive childhood, Rifftrax provides the hilarity.** Bill likes to depict his upbringing as this, with a big part of the joke being that he thinks they're sweet childhood memories.* HollywoodPudgy: [[invoked]] Parodied during ''Film/PiratesOfTheCaribbeanTheCurseOfTheBlackPearl'', where there's a RunningGag about how fat the slim Creator/KeiraKnightley is. On the other hand, they also make cracks about her flat chest, but the guys are never above contradicting themselves to make a joke.** During the first ''{{Film/Transformers}}'' movie, Kevin at one point calls Creator/MeganFox a "porker."* HollywoodToneDeaf:** Whenever Disembaudio sings along to an end credits song, most notably in the ''Film/{{Titanic|1997}}'' riff.** The guys mock a group of tone-deaf singers in "Coffeehouse Rendezvous" by singing "I harmonize badly" in set of truly horrible voices. They're otherwise pretty good singers, especially Kevin.* HollywoodTactics: They like to {{Lampshade|Hanging}} this now and then, such as in ''[[{{Literature/Twilight}} New Moon]]'' where the vampires' and werewolves' tactics seemed to consist of "run directly at the enemy." Likewise with the battle at the end of ''{{Film/Avatar}}'', they would have Sully shout "Proceed with the plan!" and someone else would shout back "And what was the plan again?"** This happens again during the montage in ''Film/CaptainAmericaTheFirstAvenger'', where they point out that after Cap gets his shield the entire team stops taking any precautions and just runs into enemy strongholds without taking cover.* HypocriticalHumor.** At least once per track, they will make fun of [=RiffTrax=].--->'''Kevin:''' And I especially hate those stupid advertisements for sound tracks where people just make fun of perfectly good movies.** It doesn't stop there, though. From ''Literature/{{Twilight}}'':--->'''Kevin:''' And all those ''stupid'' ads for downloadable commentaries!\\'''Mike:''' Uh, Kevin?\\'''Kevin:''' ''[beat]'' I '''love''' those things!** From ''Film/TheMatrix'':--->'''Mr. Rhinehart:''' You have a problem with authority, Mr. Anderson.\\'''Kevin:''' No, I don't! Go to hell!** Similarily, from ''Film/StarTrek'':--->'''Sarek:''' ''[to young Spock]'' Emotions run deep within our race.\\'''Bill:''' No, they don't -- GO TO HELL, Dad!** From ''Film/TheMatrixReloaded'':--->'''The Merovingian:''' Choice is an illusion created between those with power and those without.\\'''Mike:''' I choose to think of it that way anyhow.** In the riff for ''Film/BattlefieldEarth'', Mike Nelson states that he finds it undignified for a grown man to ever wear a jumpsuit, [[Series/MysteryScienceTheater3000 even for an acting role]].** Mike Nelson points out in the riff for ''Film/HarryPotterAndTheOrderOfThePhoenix'' that it's utterly rich for Moody to claim that Sirius following them in dog form might "blow the entire operation" when they're surrounded by muggles.--->'''Mike:''' Yes, the ''dog'' might attract attention, you ''staff-toting one-eyed goon''.* ImperialStormtrooperMarksmanshipAcademy:** Gets {{Lampshaded}} by the guys a lot. Referred to almost by name in ''Film/TheMatrixReloaded''.** After a Stormtrooper suffers a RailingKill, Han tosses the gun away as well.--->'''Kevin:''' If that gun lands on him, it'll be the first time that thing ever hit anything.* InsistentTerminology: A RunningGag during the Riff of ''Film/TheWickerMan2006'' has Kevin referring to Creator/NicolasCage's outfit as a suit, whereupon Mike ''emphatically'' insists that it's a "'''SPORT COAT AND SLACKS'''."* ItWillNeverCatchOn: When a 1978 Creator/{{CBS}} network promo airs during ''Film/TheStarWarsHolidaySpecial'':-->'''Mike:''' Boy, that ''Series/SixtyMinutes'' show will never last.* JokeAndReceive: In ''Film/TheGuyFromHarlem'', when Al is talking about keeping Wanda safe before meeting up with her father the next day, Mike jokes that they can hide out at Al's girlfriend's place, which he did earlier in the movie (to her chagrin). A few minutes later, they show the interior of her place, and Mike says "They actually went there!? I was kidding!"* KillItWithFire: Bill [[InvokedTrope shouts]] the trope name when he gets a look at Ricky's teacher in the short "Danger Keep Out!"* LargeHam: Kevin Murphy. Perhaps to an even greater extent, Bill Corbett.* LatexPerfection: Referenced. When [[Film/CaptainAmericaTheFirstAvenger Red Skull]] rips off his perfect latex mask:-->'''Mike:''' If that's [[Film/MissionImpossible Tom Cruise]] under that mask, I'm leaving.* LetMeGetThisStraight: The guys use this trope sometimes to point out the more ludicrous elements of a film's plot.-->'''Kevin''': And [[Film/BattlefieldEarth all this]] is supposed to make us somehow feel ''good'' about Scientology?-->'''Mike''': Sure, in the same way that ''Film/BirthOfANation'' endeared us all to [[UsefulNotes/KuKluxKlan the Klan]].

-->'''Bill''': Did [[{{Film/Avatar}} this]] make more sense in 3D?-->'''Mike''': Well, the script was written in 1D.* LetUsNeverSpeakOfThisAgain: Mike after the attempted sing-along during one of the sex scenes in ''The Room''.** In the intro to ''{{Film/Thor}}'', Mike states that he asked the guys to come up with fresh ideas for the movie. Both ideas are awful; Bill's is pretty much ProductPlacement so he can get a discount on plumbing services, and Kevin's involves [[DudeNotFunny mocking a movie about racism]]. He ends the intro by warning the two of them not to speak of their ideas again.* LieBackAndThinkOfEngland: Kevin seems to be fond of saying this as a joke; he used it in ''Film/TheMatrix'' and ''Film/TheRoom'', and possibly others.* MadeOfExplodium: Mike likes {{Lampshading}} this. When something explodes for no good reason, he's likely to shout something like "No! Not my collection of antique kerosene lanterns!"* MadLibsCatchPhrase:** "[Noun] ain't gonna [verb] [pronoun]self!" is said exactly once in ''every'' movie.** "I'm gonna [verb] the ''hell'' outta that [noun]!", carried over from ''Series/MysteryScienceTheater3000'', is said almost as frequently.* MadnessMantra: Some of the shorts provide their own, including "Quality freshness and flavor" (''Three Magic Words''), "Give George some more beans" (''Each Child Is Different'') and "Mr Bungle!" (''Lunchroom Manners'').* MagicCountdown: In ''Film/TheHungerGames'', while Katniss is waiting to get put into the Games, a voice over the PA announces "Thirty seconds." Mike starts counting down, and gets all the way to ten before the announcer comes back and says "twenty seconds." Mike immediately revises his count back up to 20. Especially odd since it wasn't even a RaceAgainstTheClock situation, so there wasn't really any need to stretch time.* MightyWhitey: They make sure to point this out in ''{{Film/Avatar}}''. * {{Mondegreen}}:** In-universe and invoked. The riffers make a lot of rather puerile (but ''very'' funny) gags about mishearing the word "bonus" as "boners" in their ''Film/{{Alien}}'' riff. Cue many references to "the boners situation". ** In ''Film/BatmanAndRobin'', Mr. Freeze freezes Robin and quips, "Stay [[PungeonMaster cool]], bird boy." The riffers mishear it as "''beard'' boy", thanks to [[Creator/ArnoldSchwarzenegger Freeze]]'s accent.** In ''Film/TheEmpireStrikesBack'', Kevin mishears Han's line "We'll soon be gone" as "bassoon beagle."** In ''Film/{{Daredevil}}'', when Elektra Natchios introduces herself.--->'''Kevin:''' Did she say "electric nachos"?** In ''Film/StarTrekIITheWrathOfKhan'', they mishear Bones' line "Genesis, I presume" as "Jim, this is CypressHill".** In ''Film/{{Twilight}}'':--->'''Charlie:''' I've known him goin' on thirty years.\\'''Bill:''' I heard "om gom om thirty years". You guys?\\'''Mike:''' Yep, "om gom om thirty years".*** In ''Eclipse'':--->'''Edward:''' Do you regret going?\\'''Mike:''' Yup. Jermabrigullen sure.\\'''Bella:''' No. It was really great seeing my mum. Just really hard saying goodbye.\\'''Bill:''' Well. Jermabrigullen.\\** In ''Film/HarryPotterAndTheHalfBloodPrince'':--->'''Bellatrix:''' You should be honored, Cissy. As should Draco.\\'''Mike:''' You guys get that?\\'''Kevin:''' "You should be on a sizhy azured dreickel", I think.** From ''Film/PlanNineFromOuterSpace'', the line "I really do love you, darling," is mumbled so badly that the riffers hear it as "I'mma go to Levytown."* MoodDissonance: The riffers will gleefully destroy the mood of any and all dramatic scenes in a movie. Even death/[[TheFunInFuneral funeral]] scenes are not safe from their constant joking.* MundaneMadeAwesome: Mike levels an accusation of this during ''Film/{{Predator}}''. He says that the tense music being played during an otherwise boring scene of Arnold walking through the jungle could be used to make anything sound epic, such as going to the store for milk or discovering you might be able to pay off your car sooner than you thought.* MundaneUtility: Exaggerated after [[Film/HarryPotterAndThePrisonerOfAzkaban Hermione]] reveals she's been using TimeTravel to pack more classes into her schedule.-->'''Bill:''' That's the nerdiest use of time travel since I went back in time to post "first" on a message board.* MythologyGag:** ''Film/XMen1'' opens with a caption stating that the film is set in "The not too distant future", prompting one of the guys to remark that something about that [[Series/MysteryScienceTheater3000 seems familiar somehow]].** In ''Film/CaptainAmericaTheFirstAvenger'', they deliberately mistake Creator/StanLee for Creator/JackKirby during the CreatorCameo. While Lee was in part responsible for reintroducing Cap to 1960's readers, Kirby originally created the character.* NoodleImplements: In the short ''Welcome Back, Norman,'' Mike states "The contents of those two briefcases would shock even the most jaded sex trade worker."* NoodleIncident: Bill once had to watch Creator/RobertMitchum take a whizz, but not on screen. He just ''had'' to.** Invoked during ''{{Film/Highlander}}''. In one scene, Bill mentions something (an implied sex act) called a "Kentucky Wedding." He keeps trying to get the others to ask him what a Kentucky Wedding is, but they refuse to take the bait.[[note]]If there really is such a thing as a Kentucky Wedding, aside from the literal meaning, Google is unable to find it.[[/note]]* NotWhatItLooksLike: Disembaudio has a tendency to wander in during a sex scene in the movie, causing him to come to the conclusion that the guys put on smut whenever he leaves the room. * NotableOriginalMusic: The DVD menu for ''Film/SwingParadeOf1946'' has Kevin singing a soft rock ballad called "Larry's Fine", a love song about Larry of ''Creator/TheThreeStooges''.* NotMakingThisUpDisclaimer: During their live Rifftrax of ''[[Series/DoctorWho The Five Doctors]],'' Bill, as TheBrigadier, laments that no one calls him by name, saying that it's [[OverlyLongName Sir Alistair Gordon Lethbridge-Stewart]]. He then immediately tells the audience to Google it if they don't believe him.* TheNicknamer* NoIndoorVoice: The guys (especially Bill) like to {{Lampshade}} characters who do this by shouting nonsense. Mind you, [[HypocriticalHumor Bill has a tendency to be overly loud in the live riffs]]...* ObviouslyEvil:** "[[Film/IronMan Obadiah Stane]]? Did they consider naming him Menacing T. Badperson?"** They will often have the bad guy (especially if he's hiding his intentions) blurt out things like "[[SuspiciouslySpecificDenial I'm not]] [[MostDefinitelyNotAVillain being evil]]!" ** Lucius Malfoy, in ''Film/HarryPotterAndTheChamberOfSecrets''. Whenever he said something particularly menacing, one of the guys would say something like "I'm sorry, did that sound evil? I sincerely meant it!"* OhCrap: Occasionally shows up among the riffers. For instance, during the short ''Live and Learn'', in which even the most innocuous activities (such as cutting out paper dolls) turn out horribly for the children involved, we cut to two kids with a rifle:-->'''Mike:''' Oh, this isn't going to end well.* OhNoYouDidnt: When one of the characters in ''Braniac'' becomes mesmerized by the title character, Kevin comments that his face has become stuck in this position.* OverlyLongGag:** Kevin has a really bad (almost ''intentional'') tendency to do jokes that run on for several minutes. They only stop when someone actually stops him.-->'''Bill:''' ''[after Kevin has been making annoying siren noises in Highway Mania]'' Kevin? Don't take this the wrong way, but I ''will'' murder you and ''smile'' doing it.** A callback to his tendency to do so as Tom Servo in ''[=MST3K=]'', most notably in ''Film/ManosTheHandsOfFate'' when he single-handedly delivers the single longest riff in the entire series.** Subverted on the ''Literature/{{Twilight}}'' commentary when Mike starts to praise the plausibility of the love story only for Kevin to hit him with a phonebook.** On the other hand, Kevin was greeted with praise for his minutes-long "Amway Sketch" during ''Film/{{Avatar}}''. Granted, it ''was'' ActuallyPrettyFunny.** Later on in the same film, Mike comments that Kevin "covered three city blocks" in setting up a joke about the Kansas City Royals baseball team.** During the ''Firehead'' riff, Kevin does a really long "singing along to the music" gag for an entire scene. In this case, the length of the gag is meant to call attention to how long and pointless the scene itself is.* OverlyNarrowSuperlative: In one of the Batman shorts, they refer to producer Sam Katzman as "the Creator/OrsonWelles of stories about diamond-powered remote control magnetic science weapons."* PlayingGertrude: During ''Film/TheBourneIdentity'', they keep joking that Creator/JuliaStiles' character looks far too young to be playing a CIA operative.* PrecisionFStrike: In general, the guys keep their commentary clean. They usually don't use language the film itself avoids. However, there are a few exceptions.** On the short ''The Red Hen'', the following conversation takes place.--->'''Kevin:''' I think it was really important to focus on the ''Red'' Hen. The subtle differences between how the Red Hen and the speckled hen would handle this situation really elevates this short to a new level.\\'''Bill:''' What level is that, Kevin?\\'''Kevin:''' ''Complete'' '''''dogshit'''''.** From ''Film/TheLastAirbender'':-->'''Sokka:''' My grandmother would say, "why is your hair white, young lady, you look so strange!"\\'''Yue:''' I would say...\\'''Bill:''' F**k off, Granny!** From ''Film/BattlefieldEarth'':--->''[While listening to an InfoDump from a MrExposition]''\\'''Mike:''' All right, this is good, this is...\\'''Kevin:''' This is horseshit.\\'''Mike:''' ''[{{Beat}}]'' Right.** From ''[[Literature/{{Twilight}} Twilight: Breaking Dawn Part 2]]'' after the big final battle is [[spoiler:revealed to be a vision of Alice's.]]--->'''Bill:''' Wait, you're fucking kidding me.** In the live riff of ''Film/ManosTheHandsOfFate'', Kevin asked if the scene with the Master and his wives was "more of that Creator/ImprovEverywhere bullshit."** From the live show Sketchfest 2015, the "Writing Better Social Letters" short, regarding an invitation to a "Washington's Birthday Ball":--->'''Wally:''' Well I'll write out a formal answer that starts out like this–\\'''Bill:''' Dear George, go fuck yourself and your gross wooden teeth!\\''[with a bonus CallBack later on]''** In the riff of ''Film/SuperMarioBros'', they give a LongList of the ways the big vehicle chase scene is inferior to ''VideoGame/MarioKart''...before concluding that at least there's no "f*cking Blue Shells".** A great one in ''Christmas Circus with Whizzo the Clown!'':-->'''Bill:''' Now they're just OPENLY laughing at him.\\'''Kevin:''' Not even pity, it's just raw contempt.\\'''Bill:''' ''(As kid)'' "Whizzo, you piece of shit!"** In ''Film/TheGuyFromHarlem'', after Al orders a well done New York strip steak and J&B Scotch:-->'''Bill''': "Hope you like really tough burnt meat and shitty scotch."* ProtagonistCenteredMorality: They like to call movies out on this. For instance, during the Paris chase scene in ''Film/TheBourneIdentity'', they made comments about how millions of euros in property damage were inflicted, dozens of lives endangered, and how years of therapy would be needed to pieces people's shattered lives back together, but that's all OK, because Creator/MattDamon and his girlfriend are safe.* PunctuatedForEmphasis:** Mike and the other boys make fun of this trope, especially when they riff ''Film/ThreeHundred.''-->'''Bill:''' Well, I think he certainly proved that THIS! IS! SPARTA!\\'''Mike:''' Yeah, his kids make fun of him 'cause when he's handing out stuff on the 4th of July he insists on saying, "THIS! IS! A SPARKLER!"\\'''Kevin:''' Or, when he's giving his car a tune-up and his kid asks, "Hey Dad, what's that small white thing with the metal at each end?" he always replies "THIS! IS! A SPARKPLUG!"\\'''Bill:''' Or, when he sits down to a meal of juice, toast, milk, and Trix cereal--\\'''Mike:''' Uh-oh, where's he going with this?\\'''Bill:''' And he looks at his bowl of Trix and he says, "THIS! IS! SPART OF A BALANCED BREAKFAST!"\\'''Kevin:''' Wow!\\'''Mike:''' [[ActuallyPrettyFunny You pulled it off]]; nicely done!\\'''Bill:''' Thank you very much.** Later, there's "This! Is! Dinner!"** And in the ''Literature/{{Twilight}}'' [=RiffTrax=], "THIS! IS! [-Forks High School: Home of the-] SPARTANS!"** And in ''Film/RevengeOfTheSith'': "THIS! IS! THE TEDDY BEAR PICNIC!"* PunyEarthlings: Inverted in ''Abraxas: Guardian of the Universe''. When noting how much trouble the [[InformedAttribute supposedly superhuman]] villain is having chasing down "a confused young woman in the snow", Bill comments that most of the species in the Universe are just sentient bowls of goop, so this is a bit of a challenge.* TheQuisling: In ''Film/ReignOfFire'' Kevin suggests that the characters should switch to the side of the dragons, and makes it clear that if a dragon attack like that ever happened in the real world, he'll do just that.* RealityEnsues: They will sometimes joke after watching a character suffer blunt force trauma about how they should be crippled or dead after that. A notable example is in the beginning ''Film/IronMan'' when Tony Stark gets blown up and falls hundreds of feet.* {{Retcon}}: They directly reference the term in the riffs for ''Film/HarryPotterAndTheChamberOfSecrets'' and ''Film/PsychoII''.* {{Rimshot}}:** Kevin makes the sound about six or seven times in the Rifftrax for ''Film/CasinoRoyale2006'' during some witty flirting. Mike asks at one point if he can go get Kevin a snare drum and a cymbal.** He also fires off a couple during ''Film/ThreeHundred''.* RobotBuddy: Disembaudio.* RuleThirtyFour:** Mentioned during the "Being On Time Game" short when a dad eats a banana during an overcranked sequence. Mike and Kevin have to physically restrain Bill from looking it up.** In ''Film/HarryPotterAndTheChamberOfSecrets'', when Hermione turns around to reveal she's accidentally turned herself into a CatGirl, Mike mentions that a new type of {{Slashfic}} has just been invented.* RunningTheAsylum: Invoked; most of the jokes in their ''Film/BatmanAndRobin'' riff were submitted by fans, which sadly comes with a major dose of EndingFatigue as the riffs become noticeably sparse during the climax of the film.* SanitySlippage: ''Rollergator'' was already testing the crew's patience to start with, but the revelation that the manager of the amusement park in the film has an alligator head and the film ending with said manager biting someone's head are what really breaks them. They then spend the rest of the credits LaughingMad and shooting with machine guns all over.* SarcasmMode: Used [[SarcasmMode a few times]].-->'''Mike:''' The silver screen cannot contain the heated passion of ''Literature/{{Twilight}}''!* ScrewThisImOuttaHere: Joked about several times in various shorts and movies. The best example is when Bill just flat out sprints to get away from having to do ''Transformers 3''. He moves faster than a 50 year comedian has any right to.* SelfDeprecation: For professional snarkers, the guys direct a refreshingly large number of jokes at themselves ([[VitriolicBestBuds and each other]]) for being overweight, nerdy, incapable of holding their drink, etc. This sportingness probably contributes to the fact that their riffs never sound truly mean-spirited.** Taken to its logical conclusion when, after appearing on ''Series/AtMidnight'', the guys [[https://twitter.com/midnight/status/618233501414879232 unflatteringly riff themselves]].* SelfReferentialHumor: A lot. But special mention goes to the opening of their ''Film/{{Highlander}}'' riff where Bill and Kevin begin with a generic template of their normal dialog.** Mixing this with SelfDeprecation: in ''Film/BattlefieldEarth'', Mike comments that it's demeaning for anyone to wear a jumpsuit, "even for a job."* SkewedPriorities: Often, and played for laughs.--> '''Kevin:''' ''[as [[Film/TheMatrix Neo]] discards his empty weapon during [[KillEmAll the climactic lobby shootout]]]'' Ugh, you know what message that sends to the young people out there? That it's okay to just go ahead and throw their semi-automatic rifles on the floor like he just did. Well, shame on you sir!** In ''Film/ReturnOfTheJedi'', this exchange takes place, as a jab at fanboys:--->'''Bill:''' I think they should have stuck with their original title, ''Revenge of the Jedi.''\\'''Mike:''' Bold stance, Bill. And what's you opinion on the atrocities occurring in Darfur?\\'''Bill:''' Darfur? Is that in the Dagobah System?** In ''Film/IronMan1'', while Tony Stark is building his first suit [[MemeticMutation IN A CAVE! WITH A BOX OF SCRAPS!]] The riffers can't stop lamenting the various stupid hats Tony is wearing.* SpecialPersonNormalName: The riffers are quick to point out that the evil queen in "The Sons of Hercules" is named...Melissa. On the other hand, they really enjoy giving characters hilariously mundane names.* SpiritualSuccessor: To ''Series/MysteryScienceTheater3000'', of course, but more directly to ''The Film Crew'', where Mike, Bill and Kevin played themselves, and did silhouette-less riffing on DVD films.* StealthPun: In the ''Film/TheFifthElement'' Riff, Mike points out that the fifth element on the Periodic Table is actually Boron, and hopes that's not what the movie's about, since Boron is not a very interesting element.[[note]]One could say he finds Boron boring.[[/note]] It also functions as a ShoutOut to their second ''[=MST3K=]'' summer blockbuster special.* SuddenlyShouting: Bill does this sometimes, usually when something in a movie pushes him over the edge. The usual format it takes is that he'll start asking for clarification on something happening in a movie, then say "or" like he's about to offer a second possibility, and then the shouting starts.* TakeThat:** In their Riff of ''Film/FantasticFour'': "Wait, Music/{{Nickelback}}'s an actual band? All these years I thought it was just a derogatory term for a terrible band."** In their Riff of ''Film/XMen1'':--->'''Logan:''' This is the stupidest thing I've ever heard.\\'''Mike:''' You haven't seen ''[[{{Sequelitis}} X-Men 3]]''.** Similarly, their riff of ''Film/TheMatrix'':--->'''Neo:''' This is insane ...!\\'''Kevin:''' No no, [[{{Sequelitis}} the next two movies are insane]]; this one was somewhat rational.** The ENTIRE ''Literature/{{Twilight}}'' commentary.** While passing time during the Podrace scene in ''Film/ThePhantomMenace'', Kevin starts reading from IMDB, to Mike's annoyance. One of the facts Kevin reads off was about the poor box office showing of ''Film/BarbWire'', which Gramercy Pictures chose to promote instead of ''[=MST3K: The Movie=]'' over a decade earlier.** Lots of take thats at Jar Jar during the first two movies (he wasn't on the screen much for the third). And then in the original trilogy riffs, all kinds of horrible things happen to Jar Jar and Gungans in general off-screen.--->'''Mike:''' Now eat your fried Gungan.** They completely ignored what was happening onscreen during the Mace Windu vs. Palpatine fight in ''Film/RevengeOfTheSith'' in favor of listening to one of the gang explain his old family pate recipe.** ''Film/TheHungerGames'' features quite a few vicious jabs at Lenny Kravitz.** In the Riff of ''Neutron the Atomic Superman'':--->'''Kevin:''' So far, this has more laughs than ''Film/NachoLibre''.\\'''Bill:''' I don't think it's a comedy.\\'''Kevin:''' I never said it was.** The ''Film/{{Birdemic}}'' riff has them mention that the guys flailing their arms around trying to hit some birds with coat hangers look like they're playing [[UsefulNotes/{{Xbox360}} Kinect]], except more dignified. ** In ''Film/ThePhantomMenace'', when Jabba comes out to announce the start of the race, "Now here's [[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ls1YVhcLD2c Roseanne Barr]] to sing the National Anthem." Sebulba's hamming to the crowd is met with "Creator/SteveBuscemi, ladies and gentlemen, Steve Buscemi!"** In response to the reaction of some fans after it was announced that ''Film/StarshipTroopers'' would get riffed, the ensuing live show (and some later riffs, as well) contained many jokes at the expense of fans who considered ''Starship Troopers'' a "brilliant satire."--->'''Johnny Rico:''' It looks like something sucked his brains out.--->'''Mike:''' And then he wrote an essay on the brilliance of ''Starship Troopers''' satire.** In ''Film/PlanetOfTheDinosaurs'', Harvey gets brutally impaled by a centrosaurus.--->'''Mike Nelson:''' Still. He suffered less than anyone who ever watched the Creator/{{ABC}} show ''{{Series/Dinosaurs}}''.* TakeThatMe: Combined with HypocriticalHumor. During ''Film/BattlefieldEarth'', Mike comments that it's demeaning for a grown man to wear a jumpsuit, [[Series/MysteryScienceTheater3000 even for an acting role]].** In the Rifftrax Live of ''Film/Sharknado2TheSecondOne'' featured a gag mocking ''Film/MeetDave'', which was co-written by Bill Corbett.[[note]]For those saying "Bill Corbett wrote ''that?''" Corbett has gone on record stating that while he did the first draft of the script, and worked on later drafts, many other writers "romped through the script as well," and the whole suffered from a "too-many-cooks" thing.[[/note]]* ThePasswordIsAlwaysSwordfish: ** Bill Corbett in the ''Film/CasinoRoyale2006'' [=RiffTrax=] says that M "should use a better password than 'password'" when she is alarmed that Film/JamesBond uses her password.** Kevin invokes this trope by name when Barbara is trying to guess Alfred's password in ''Film/BatmanAndRobin''.* ThisIsGonnaSuck:** The day after ''Film/TransformersDarkOfTheMoon'' was released, Mike, Bill and Kevin endlessly tweeted about how ''terrible'' it was -- and they know they'll have to do a [=RiffTrax=] for it. Sucks for them, great for us. They even did a short video sketch about how much they were dreading it. [[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3qcAQ_OXmzk "NO! I'M COMMUNING!"]].** For ''Film/FunInBalloonland'', Bill gasps, "Oh God" when the off-key singing begins.* ThisIsForEmphasisBitch: In their riff on ''The Literature/{{Twilight}} Saga: Eclipse''.--> '''Bill Corbett:''' [[CrowningMomentofFunny Housekeeping, Bitch!]]* ThreeMonthOldNewborn: Happens a lot, and always mocked -- the baby in ''Ator, the Fighting Eagle'' is at least seven months old and super-chubby -- but a rare aversion happens in, of all things, the Greydon Clark-directed ''Dark Future''. Kevin even points out it looks like a preemie, and none of the guys seem comfortable with a baby girl so young being in a trashy movie like this.-->'''Kevin:''' ''(As the baby)'' "I'm deeply undernourished! Send help!"* TriggerHappy: During ''Neutron the Atomic Superman'', Kevin says that when he's home alone, he reacts to any noise by reaching for his gun. His examples include his wife announcing her return from a brief visit with her sister, and the police arriving to investigate all the recent shootings.* TurnInYourBadge: The riffers like peppering this dialogue into movies, usually when an authority figure is speaking to a subordinate. For added comedy value, the person being reprimanded generally isn't a CowboyCop, and often doesn't have any kind of badge to turn in.* TheUnintelligible:** The kids in the short "A Visit From Santa." They are described as "speaking in tongues," and a little bit later as though they're speaking an "obscure Carpathian dialect."** The gas station owner in ''Film/{{Birdemic}}''. The riffers treat his incomprehensible speech a bit more kindly than the children in "A Visit From Santa," possibly because the guy is clearly a foreigner and just as clearly not an actor.* ValuesDissonance: [[invoked]] Frequently addressed by the riffers, especially when it comes to women and having a personality.* ViewersAreGeniuses: As with ''[=MST3K=]'', the guys like to make ''very'' obscure jokes, things that only a handful of the fans can be expected to get. Sometimes they {{Lampshade}} it, like when Mike makes a joke about ''Film/{{Crossroads|2002}}'' during ''Film/{{Avatar}}'', and Kevin says, "[[LampshadingTheObscureReference The 0.1% of the audience who got that joke thank you, Mike]]."* ViewersAreMorons: The audience that many of the shorts were originally created for. Some of these include how to draw a rectangle and how to boil water.-->'''Bill Corbett:''' Should a person who doesn't know what "boil" means even be allowed near an open flame?* WhatMeasureIsAMook: Frequently {{Lampshaded}}. When the hero is wiping out a room full of {{Mooks}}, sometimes one of the guys will call out something like "I work in the cafeteria! I was just getting some more napkins!"-->'''Mike Nelson:''' Horray! She murdered a whole bunch of guys with wives and families who have children who will be wondering if Dad is coming home! Hurrah!* WhatTheHellHero:** Generally called out with a "Our heroes, ladies and gentlemen."** Mike does this towards Kevin in the Rifftrax of ''Film/ThePhantomMenace'' when Kevin says that having Creator/MichaelBay direct ''WesternAnimation/TheBananaSplits'' would be better than this.* WhereAreTheyNowEpilogue:** Mike does one at the end of ''Film/RoadHouse'', except it's about all the characters dying in various ways -- he even includes such characters as "the man who wanted to try Dalton" and "the man who encouraged fellow patrons to grope his wife." Afterwards he claims he was joking and in fact everybody lived HappilyEverAfter ... except Tinker.** Mike tries to do this at the end of ''[[Film/OceansEleven Ocean's Eleven]]'', but the epilogue cuts him off mid-sentence. Twice.** They also do this at the end of the ''Lunchroom Manners'' short: "And Senator Bungle is doing alright for himself." * WifeHusbandry: In ''[[{{Film/Twilight}} Breaking Dawn Part 2]]'', once it's revealed that Jacob and Renesme have imprinted, the guys don't let up on him for a second. This is not an exaggeration, literally ''every single'' joke about Jake from that moment on is about his being in love with a baby.* WithLyrics:** This is done often in the movie but constantly during the shorts, almost to the point of OnceAnEpisode. Usually the lyrics are DarkerAndEdgier too. For instance, singing "probably going to die" to the tune of the theme music for ''Film/HarryPotterAndThePrisonerOfAzkaban'' or Bill's anti-monkey lyrics from "Monkey See, Monkey Do: Verbs".--->''[from the short "County Fair"]''\\'''Singing Narrator:''' ''The ferris wheel goes around and around''\\''Around and around like the merry-go-round''\\'''Mike Nelson:''' ''It falls to the ground with a hideous sound,''\\''And bodies are plummeting down, down, down.''** [[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EknZRgYcD6s Their version of Edward's lullaby (0:00 - 0:40) is priceless]].* YourHeadAsplode: Mike, Bill and Kevin's heads literally explode during the ''The Calendar -- How To Use It'' short -- not because the short was bad, but because the calendar was ''too damn clever''.------>''"[[TheStinger Rifftrax -- Some movies have it coming]]."''